List of camoufleurs

The term originally meant a person serving in a First World War French military camouflage unit.

Surrealist artist Roland Penrose wrote that he and Julian Trevelyan were both "wondering how either of us could be of any use in an occupation so completely foreign to us both as fighting a war, we decided that perhaps our knowledge of painting should find some application in camouflage.

Lucien-Victor Guirand de Scévola's Section de Camouflage, founded in September 1914 in the French army, developed many new techniques, some of them highly dangerous, such as putting up artificial, camouflaged trees at night to replace actual trees with cramped observation posts.

Both men believed passionately that effective disruptive camouflage was vital, especially in the face of aerial observation, but they had difficulty persuading authorities such as the British Air Ministry that their approach was the right one.

At least one Royal Air Force officer felt that Cott's camouflage was highly effective, but, since it would demand the presence of a skilled artist for every installation, too costly to be practical.

Cover of The Fortnightly Fluer magazine for Second World War camoufleurs.
The Fortnightly Fluer , the magazine for "Camou-Fluers" of Middle East Command , April 1942. Illustration by Brian Robb .
André Mare 's ink and watercolour sketch Le canon de 280 camouflé (The Camouflaged 280 Gun), c.1917, shows a Cubist artist's work for the French army in the First World War .
Lucien-Victor Guirand de Scévola
Lucien-Victor Guirand de Scévola , leader of the pioneering French First World War camouflage unit.
Photograph of Geoffrey Barkas.
Geoffrey Barkas , British Army's Director of Camouflage, Middle East during Second World War.